


Rekindle

by WoahThereMatey



Category: Ikenfell (Video Game)
Genre: Family, Gen, Sisterly bonding, Sparring, and she teaches some of the most wonderful students, basically magic duels but for fun, deep talks, if she puts her mind to something, just wholesomeness here, maritte is now a professor at ikenfell, no pain today, safina is now a high ranking member of the coven, there's no stopping her
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-23
Updated: 2021-02-23
Packaged: 2021-03-13 13:21:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,808
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29651943
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WoahThereMatey/pseuds/WoahThereMatey
Summary: Maritte and Safina have been through a lot over the past few years. After Maritte became a powerful fire witch and Safina became a member of the Coven, much has changed.With that in mind, Safina decides to pay her a surprise visit.The result? Some very long overdue wholesome sisterly bonding!
Relationships: Maritte Hildegaard & Safina Hildegaard
Comments: 2
Kudos: 1





	Rekindle

**Author's Note:**

> Thought I'd do something different for once and take a break from multi-chapter fics.  
> So I decided I'd try my hand at a oneshot. One that deviates from my usual writing style. No romance, no drama, just wholesomeness and fun.
> 
> Enjoy!

Safina stood in front of Maritte’s door.   
  
It had been awhile since she’d been here last. 5 years, in fact.

Safina couldn’t help but chuckle at herself. She felt old already. A lot had changed in the past few years, to be sure.

She had been writing to her a lot while she was doing work for the Coven. She heard of Maritte becoming a professor at the school she once went to, which really warmed her heart. Hard to believe there was a time where she was an ordinary!

She shook herself from her thoughts, knocking on the door.

She waited and listened as footsteps gradually grew closer to the door, before the door opened, revealing Maritte.

“Oh, Saf! What a wonderful surprise!” She warmly smiled.

“Come in, come in!”

Safina thanked her as she went inside, slipping off her snow covered boots and heavy red winter jacket.

She immediately took a seat by the fire, letting its warmth seep into her body.

Maritte joined her, even though she personally didn’t seek its warmth. “You’ve been busy, huh?”   
  
Safina nodded, the dancing flames of the fireplace reflecting in her eyes. She held her hands closer to the fire in an attempt to warm them up from the bitter cold she had been in just before.

“Never gets easier. But it’s good work. Someone’s gotta do it, right?”   
  
Safina leaned forward, unfurling a pocket knife and a rock that were sitting in her pocket. She started carving something in the rock.

Maritte leaned over to get a better look. “What’re you doing?”   
  
Safina stopped, showing Maritte the pocket knife. “I found this old pocket knife on one of my missions. Not only is it useful, but I found out that carving stuff was a fun and interesting way to kill time!”

Maritte took a close look at it, only to come to the realization..!

“Wait… is that MY pocket knife?”

Safina paused, handing it to her.

Maritte gave it a look over.

Sure enough, it had that red mark on it. From the day she first got it. It also had the letter “M” etched onto it.

“It is! Where did you find this? I lost it years ago!”

Safina smiled. “Wasn’t too far from here, actually. Was somewhere near where that old prison was. I don’t know why it was there, but…”

“Well, it’s yours. Keep it.”

Maritte shook her head, handing it back to her. “N-no, I couldn’t. How will you carve anything without one of your own?”   
  
Safina handed it back to Maritte again, insistent. “I can always find or purchase another one. I insist.”

Maritte took it in her hand once more. She pocketed it, softly grinning. “Thanks, Saf.”   
  
Safina grinned, peering at the carving she had begun on the rock.

It wasn’t much yet, but she was sure Maritte would love it.

Safina’s stomach audibly growled.

“Oh! You must be hungry! Say, how about some lunch?”

Safina eagerly nodded. Last time she had Maritte’s cooking, it was pancakes. They were, bar none, the best she ever had.

That fire magic ought to be useful for cooking, huh?

“Sure! Give me a few minutes and I’ll whip something up!” Maritte left for the kitchen, leaving Safina by the fire.

* * *

Maritte had decided to settle for something simple. Unfortunately for Safina, she had come here before Maritte had any time to restock.

Maritte went for toasted, cheesy bread, with a hint of garlic. Her fire magic did most of the work, allowing her to toast it just the right amount.

Safina was not disappointed. Maritte’s cooking had something about it that nothing else really did. She didn’t know if it had anything to do with her cooking with magic or what but you really got the feeling that she put love and care into it. Maybe that was literally the case?

They sat down at the table, choosing to have a chat and catch up.

“So…” Safina began as she took a bite.

“How’s teaching been going?”

Maritte fondly smiled. “Better than ever! I think I’m really starting to get the hang of it…”   
  
“I’m lucky to have such a great group of students, year after year. I don’t know what it is, but something about seeing them learn and grow just… it’s like nothing else.”

Safina remembered when she first learned of her status as a professor at Ikenfell. The idea seemed impossible to her at first, seeing how late she was thrown into the world of magic, and at the time her understanding of magic was still developing.

And yet? She turned out to be a natural. At least, that’s what she took away from it when she asked her about it. She wished she had time to see it for herself. Maybe even she could learn a thing or two!

“It’s first year students, right? What are they like?”   
  
“It’s a mixed bag. Some are super excited. Some, not so much. I’ve had a few who are even scared! And everything in between. But something that they all have in common is that they’re really passionate about learning magic.”   
  
“Some grasp it easier than others. But they all succeed in the end.”   
  
Maritte finished her meal. She thought back to her first day. She was so nervous, and above all else, terrified. She didn’t know what to expect. But thankfully, it all turned out okay.

Safina had also finished, getting up from the table. “I’m glad you’ve found your place, Maritte.” She smiled. A part of her feared that she may never find where she wanted to go, or that she’d be an ordinary forever. But it turns out her fears were all for nothing.

“Say, while you’re here, how about we go take a hike?”

Safina wasn’t sure she wanted to go right back out into the cold she just warmed up from, but she also never gets to do this, certainly not with Maritte.

“Sure, where to?”

“You’ll know it when you see it.” Maritte winked.

* * *

Safina knew it, alright.

She and Maritte had a little heart to heart at this very spot. At this cliffside overlooking Ikenfell and the lands around it. It even looked similar to how it did last time, too. If anything, the snow was perhaps a little more prominent than before.

The ruins looked different now. The fog seemed to have disappeared, and what wasn’t covered in snow over there looked like it was normal. Nothing was that deathly grey it was previously.

She looked back towards Ikenfell. That too looked similar, but it looked to be recently renovated. New buildings stood tall, and the old, almost dungeon esque dorms were replaced with a new, taller, far less intimidating building. She’d have to go see it for herself.

Something just occurred to her, though.

Safina never got to see Maritte’s magic in action.

The most she’s ever seen from her is a simple fireball when she showed her magic to her a few years ago for the first time. But she was curious as to how it would be in battle. She’s gotten stronger too since becoming an Archmage for the Coven, so why not..?

“Hey, Maritte.”

Maritte peered over at Safina.

“Spar with me!”

Maritte tilted her head. “Spar?”   
  
“It’s like a duel but for fun. I’ve never actually seen your magic in action before, and I wanna see what you’ve got! I’ve always wanted to do this!”

Maritte grinned. “Okay, you’re on!”

They both stood on opposite ends.

“You go first!” Safina called, preparing her magic.

Maritte nodded.

She told herself that she could win this fight. She felt a surge of energy ripple through her, her fire magic flaring brighter as it gathered in her fists.

Safina started by firing a simple beam of red light. It took awhile to charge, but it was nearly impossible to dodge. It just grazed her.

Maritte threw a pair of blue and red fireballs towards Safina, who teleported out of their path. They exploded just next to her.

Safina did nothing in response, which puzzled Maritte. So, she decided to throw one large purple fireball at her this time.

Safina, eyes flashing red, stopped it in mid air, as it turned bright red. Safina threw it back towards Maritte, hitting her point blank.

“Ugh, right. You can do that…” Maritte muttered, preparing for Safina’s next move.

Safina began charging a beam of light again, which prompted Maritte to put up a fire shield.

It fired, the beam colliding with the shield. It caused the shield to ripple, but it contained the beam without fail.

Maritte, as soon as she dispelled her shield, threw down two meteors from the sky.

Safina didn’t expect this, and took heavy damage. She staggered, but righted herself in the end.

Safina cackled, brushing herself off. “If you think you’ve won yet, think again, sis!”

Safina’s hands were cloaked in red, holding each at her side. She was engulfed in bright red energy, and, two clones of herself appeared at either side of her.

“You’ll have to try a little harder than that!” They said in unison.

Maritte grunted. She can clone herself!? What else can she do?

Maritte had to think about how these worked. She thought back to the time when she watched her friends fight Eoc, when he split himself into fragments. Those fragments looked to be unequal in strength, and weakened the caster. A downfall, yes, but two individual targets to focus on that could both deal damage.

Or, they were just images that would shatter in one hit, so she’d have to just figure out which one is actually Safina.

Maritte cloaked her fist in fire and punched the ground beneath her, causing purple and yellow flames to fall down from above and strike the ground where her fist was.

A magic field appeared before her, empowering her magic further as she stood in it.

The three Safinas all used the same attack, a red ball of energy. It was fairly slow compared to the beam, so she was able to dodge them without too much difficulty. But when they hit the ground, they splashed, remnants of the ball striking her.

Maritte went next. “Alright, Saf. Two… I mean, uh…”

Maritte cleared her throat, preparing an attack. “Five can play it that game!”

She launched two meteors from the sky once more, striking one of the targets.

One of the clones dissolved into dust on impact, and Safina was the one to dodge it.

Safina teleported right in front Maritte, cloaking her first in red energy.

Maritte put up a small shield to deflect the hit, but at the last possible second Safina teleported behind her and managed to land a blow, Maritte stumbling forward, caught off guard.

She spun around to retaliate, but Safina had already teleported back to her side, a smug grin on her face. “It’s over, sis!”

Safina dispelled her remaining clone, which disintegrated, its lifeforce being deposited back into the caster.

She began charging her final attack, the beam she had opened with.

Maritte wasn’t having any of it. She jumped up, conjuring a massive fireball. She was cloaked in fire, her eyes burning bright. “Think again, Saf!”

Safina’s eyes went wide as Maritte threw it.

It ate through the beam that fired at her, and headed straight for Safina.

It created a bright explosion. It may look like it did a lot of damage, but in reality it didn’t hurt. Maritte only wished to prove her point.

Safina laughed, smiling as she cleared the soot from herself. “Alright, you got me, Maritte!”   
  
She winked. “You’re really good! Not everyone can say they can beat a Coven Archmage in battle!”   
  
Maritte beamed. “Thanks. You’re really tough, too!”

They decided to sit back down and admire the sights again, taking a few minutes to rest.

“Is this kind of thing allowed in Ikenfell yet? I know that we couldn’t really do this kind of stuff when I went there.” Safina rolled her eyes, still not quite believing that despite there being a class centered around dueling and being in the DUELING HALL, she couldn’t get into any duels.

Maritte nodded. “Yeah. Since Gilda became the professor there, and after approval, students can now duel in the dueling hall!”   
  
“Though, uh, I guess the official term is spar. Friendly duel and Spar seem like similar concepts to me, so…” Maritte shrugged.

“They are. It’s just a term, don’t worry about it.”   
  
Maritte got up, taking one last look at the sights before her. She glanced back at Ikenfell, a smile creeping onto her face as she just got an idea.

“Hey, Saf, why don’t I show you where I teach?”

Safina eagerly nodded. “Yes! I’ve always wanted to know!”   
  
“Then what are we waiting for? Let's go!”   
  
Maritte and Safina trudged back down the cliffside, heading back towards Ikenfell.

* * *

They arrived at the Ikenfell grounds.

Safina hastily removed her winter coat thanks to the suddenly much warmer temperature. It still caught her off guard that within this school was basically an eternal fake summer. She still couldn’t even comprehend how it worked.

In stark contrast to the snowy, cold outside world, the inside of Ikenfell was warm and bright.

It looked very similar to how Safina remembered it. A vast green field with patches of sunflowers with beautiful trees that stood tall. A soothing aroma wafted through the air, putting her at ease.

She really like what Ima had done with the place. She had no idea how ze did it, but it feels just like summer did. If not better!

She’d have to ask zir when she had the time.

She huffed. She sure wish she could deploy something like this where SHE lives!

“The building isn’t far from here. Come.” Maritte briskly strode down the path.

It didn’t take long to arrive. “Here we are!”   
  
It was a simple, single story building. It had a grey exterior, looked to be made of stone bricks. Red accents were present, along with… what looked like an open roof?   
  
She supposed it made sense now that they wouldn’t have to worry about it snowing on them. But she also figured it served some sort of secondary purpose that didn’t quite come to her at this exact moment.

Maritte led her inside.

It seemed that the bulk of this building’s size was dedicated to the classroom. It had a similar desk/chair setup as the other classrooms around the school, with the same magic board that all of them held, at the center of the wall.

There was a large amount of empty space between the wall and the frontmost desks. Safina also noticed a small lump in the floor, with a narrow gap going down the middle of it.

“Oh! That’s a magic panel I use for live demonstrations. It’s so any stray magic doesn’t harm any students. It… gets a bit messy sometimes.” Maritte nervously laughed.

“It rests inside there. I can raise it at will.”

Maritte’s eyes flashed blue, and the panel rose from the gap. Another one Safina hadn’t spotted emerged from the top of the back wall, forming a seal.

Maritte threw a large fireball directly at it, causing Safina to flinch.

It didn’t even budge. She couldn’t even feel the panels shake.

Maritte dispelled them, as they flew back into their resting places.

Safina clapped in amazement. “That’s a neat party trick! Where’d you learn that?”   
  
“Ima taught me how to cast it. Rook managed to find some info around something similar that had been done before.”

Safina nodded in understanding. She took a quick look around, and then went for the lone door at the corner of the room.

This room was comparably tiny compared to the classroom. Inside was a bed, desk, chair, and various other decorations.

As soon as Maritte entered, light sources made themselves appear, as if they recognized her presence. This came in the form of floating wisps of fire, lazily hovering around the room, providing a warm and inviting orange light. Safina, being Safina, decided to touch one of them to see what would happen.

Her hand just harmessly passed through one of them, not even disrupting the flame. It was just pleasantly warm.

“This is my office. It’s where I am in between class. The bed is for times where I need to stay here long after hours, or just where I sometimes go when Perty isn’t around and I’m not on tour with her.”   
  
“Oh, right! How is that, by the way?”   
  
Maritte warmly smiled. “Great! It’s… a bit exhausting sometimes, hence why I don’t go every time. But I’m getting a lot better at it! We’re really making a name for ourselves.”   
  
Maritte softly chuckled. “Half the reason I even go is just to see her having fun. Plus the atmosphere is like nothing else.”   
  
Safina grinned. She had managed to catch a few of their performances in between operations and during off time, and she loved them. It’s an experience that couldn’t be easily described. But definitely a memorable and positive one, to be sure.

Maritte and Safina paused when they heard the classroom door open, and footsteps inside. “Yo, teach! You in here again?”

“One of your students?” Safina quietly asked.

Maritte nodded. “Yep. Though, he’s not expecting anyone else here.”

“In here, Tor!” Maritte called.

Tor peered in from the classroom. “Ah, there you are! I was wondering if…”

Tor’s eyes met with Safina’s. “Woah woah woah. Maritte, you didn’t tell me your sister was one of the Coven Archmages!”

Maritte laughed. “Surprise! She’s just here to visit, though.

Maritte turned to Safina. “Saf, this is Tor.”   
  
Tor grinned. “Hi, nice to meet you, Safina!”   
  
Tor pointed a thumb at his chest. “I am quite possibly the strongest fire wizard at this school! My classmates cower before my might!”

He could barely finished the sentence before letting out a snort. “I’m kidding. I don’t really care about that stuff. This is just a really cool class.”

“Where’s Viki?” Maritte asked.

“Oh, right. They’re just studying right now. They don’t wish to be disturbed.”   
  
Maritte nodded.

“You two know each other?”   
  
Tor’s face lit up. “You bet! We actually met a few years ago when I was around the age of 8! She’s the one who actually taught me how to bring out the full potential of my magic.”   
  
Maritte nodded. “And we ventured into a dark forest to help find his folks. Later he returned, with his friend, Viki, to become a student here. For both of them this is actually their first year!”

“And  _ I  _ smashed up some dark creatures with a flaming hammer! Pretty cool, huh?”   
  
Safina chuckled.

The thought of seeing an 8 year old kid swinging a fire hammer at literally anything was amusing. She had to wonder how much better he must’ve gotten over those couple of years.

“Well, anyway. Just came here to make sure you weren’t overworking yourself again.”   
  
Maritte quickly shook her head. “A-ah! No. Just visiting. Thanks, though!”   
  
Tor grinned. “Of course! Just doing my part!”

“Oh yeah and uh, nice to meet you, Safina!”

Tor left the room.

Safina smiled as Tor left. “I like this kid.”

* * *

Eventually they returned to Maritte’s home. The sun was beginning to set. It appears Safina may have slightly overstayed her welcome.

But she didn’t care. It was totally worth it. She just felt bad she couldn’t spend as much time with her sister as she used to.

Safina remembered what that Tor kid said, though.

Maritte apparently had issues with overworking herself?

She shuddered. She sincerely hoped Maritte wasn’t becoming a second Aeldra. This was certainly not something she was told about whenever she asked about her teaching endeavors.

Safina took Maritte’s pocket knife and decided to finish her carving. She’d have to ask her some other time.

It depicted a primitive image of a heart, and within it was Maritte and Safina’s faces, side by side.

She knew Maritte would love this.

She placed the knife back where she found it.

Say, where was Maritte, anyway?

She eventually found her vacantly staring out the window.

“Maritte?”   
  
Maritte jolted, looking back at her. “Oh!”   
  
Maritte turned away from the window, walking towards her. “Sorry, I guess I spaced out. What’s up?”

“You ok?”   
  
Maritte frowned slightly. “Y-yeah, d-don’t worry about me. I’m alright.”   
  
Safina looked at her suspiciously, but turned back to go grab that carving she did.

Safina presented it to her. “Wanted you to have this. Hope you like it!”   
  
Maritte took it, closely inspecting every detail.

Her face lit up. “Wow, this is great! How long have you been doing this?”   
  
Safina’s cheeks flushed. “U-uh, I started that this morning. As for carving i-itself, um… I think about 3 years ago?”

Maritte smiled. “I love it! I know just where to put it.”

Safina followed Maritte as she headed into her room.

There was a nightstand which had a photo of Maritte and Pertisia together. They looked happy, holding hands. She presumed it was after one of their performances, judging by their appearance in the photo. She warmly smiled.

Maritte placed the carved rock right next to it. “Perfect.”   
  
Safina frowned. “Maritte, are you really ok? Be honest with me here.”

Maritte winced.

“No, it’s just…”   
  
“Sometimes my mind just wanders back to the past. An endless series of what-ifs and so on. You know?”   
  
Safina chuckled. “Believe me, I know that better than anyone.”   
  
Safina put her hands on Maritte’s shoulders. “Listen, Maritte.”   
  
“It’s all in the past now. You should just stick to worrying about the present, and maybe planning for the future, if you’re into that sort of thing.”

Maritte frowned. “Easier said than done.”   
  
“It took me awhile to get over my past too, and yet I managed to overcome it and go on to do great things. You’ve already done great things, too, despite those odds!”   
  
“I’m confident that you can overcome that too. Plus…”   
  
Safina grinned. “You’ve got a sister ready to help you through it!”

Maritte hugged her. “T-thanks, Saf. That means a lot.”

Maritte pulled away suddenly. “But uh, wait. Don’t you have places to be? I know your position demands a lot of your time, so…”   
  
Safina shook her head.   
  
She was technically correct, but just this once she’d make an exception. She was sure her superiors would understand.

“Nah. It’s too late, anyway. If you don’t mind, do you think we could… have a sleepover?”   
  
Maritte quickly nodded. “Y-yes! Of course! That sounds like fun!”   
  
“Great! Just under one condition.”

Safina grabbed a pillow from Maritte’s bed. “We have a rematch… by way of a pillow fight!”   
  
Maritte grabbed the other one that remained. 

  
  


“You’re on, sis!”

**Author's Note:**

> Fun fact, this is actually what my very first fic was intended to be. It's no longer listed here, but basically it was supposed to be a cute little oneshot with just Maritte and Safina properly reuniting, before its scope grew out of control and I decided I wanted to include every character.  
> However, this topic was FAR too good to pass up, and I didn't want it to go to waste. So I decided to go back and revisit it. Very glad I did!
> 
> Also, a certain someone in this chapter is from another story I did awhile ago! Decided to have him make a brief appearance here, too. You get a cookie if you name where he came from B)


End file.
